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ROASTED CARROTS & RICE WITH ZINGY TURMERIC BROTH

March 6th, 2014

pin it!pin it!pin it!
This simple bowl reminded me of why I actually started this site in the first place. With the emails, sorta silly mismatched dish piles, multiple attempts at a palatable goji berry sauce (one day I’ll get it) etc., this sort of reminder is a surprising ray of light. It’s kind of soup-y, but also kind of not. It’s also mostly just carrots and spice served with a bit of rice and sprouts. It’s affordable as all get-out, quick to throw together and warming to the core. Most of these ingredients were pantry stock for me and I imagine if you’ve been here before, they might be for you too.

I may have overkilled it with turmeric-focused recipes here in the last while, so I hope you don’t mind another. Didn’t you know that all of the cool kids are staining their counters and wooden spoons with this stuff? I roast a couple carrots with thyme until they’re sweet and while that’s happening I make up this sharp miracle broth of sorts. It begins with minced shallot, garlic, ginger and turmeric. A little sparkle of lemon at the end keeps it from seeming flat. You could add a chili or something hot if you want too. It has all of the zing of turmeric tea, but in a more obviously savoury form. Once I had a taste of it all mingled around the sweet carrots and nutty rice, I kind of wondered where it had been all winter (and, news flash, this winter’s been hella long). I like green things so there’s a little tangle of sprouts/shoots (aaaaalways in season) on top of this as well.

When I was studying nutrition in culinary school, we had guest speakers from time to time. Some of them were reputable/interesting and some of them were clearly on the grind and grindin’ hard. One of the good ones was this older man of about 75-ish who was enamoured with sprouts. His name was Tony and he sold sprout growers for home use. Oh, and he maintained a website with up to date information on various styles of dance lessons/dance related socials in the province of Ontario (but also Florida). He absolutely glowed. His business cards promoted “LIVE GREEN FOOD FOR HEALTHY DANCERS.” He told us that he ate 3 tablespoons of sprouts every morning and dang if we didn’t all buy one of those guaranteed-for-life devices by the end of the class.

I honestly have no idea where that thing got to, but I still make a habit of eating sprouts as often as I can. For the amount of nutrition bundled in their little shoots, they’re cheap sustenance. If you think of a young child, all energy and potential, and then how that child grows into an adult, for better or for worse from a health standpoint… a sprout/small shoot is like the plant version of that youthful essence, all bouncing off the walls and full of possibility. I mostly like having them around because they add a bit of freshness to the non-stop roasted roots and lentil-y things that seem to be prevalent this time of year. I’m partial to sunflower + sweet pea shoots and Sarah even has some instructions on handling those all by yourself.

So we have roots, sprouts, brown rice, and healing spices. All the makings of some warming hippie health moments, or maybe just a quiet winter’s lunch. Hope you’re all getting some of those these days. xo

pin it!pin it!pin it!roasted carrots + rice with zingy turmeric broth recipeserves: 1notes: Any roasted root or tuber would be excellent in place of the carrots. This dish is mostly about the interaction of the caramelized, lightly sweet vegetables and the sharp broth.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Line a small baking sheet with parchment.

Toss the carrots with some thyme, oil, salt + pepper. Scatter them in a single layer on the baking sheet and slide them into the oven. Roast for about 20 minutes or until the carrots are browned in spots and soft.

Meanwhile, heat the coconut oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the shallots. Stir them about and sauté them until translucent and soft, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and a sprig of thyme if you like (or a sprinkle of dried thyme leaves). Stir this mix about until it’s very fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the turmeric to the pot and stir to incorporate. Keep stirring until the mix seems paste-like. You’re cooking the raw-ness out of the spice at this point, ideally for about 3 minutes (add more coconut oil if necessary). Slowly add the water and stir. Gently simmer the broth for 10 minutes or so. Add the lemon juice and stir at the end. Season the broth with salt and pepper.

Place the roasted carrots and rice in a bowl. Strain the turmeric broth if you like, then ladle it on top. Garnish the bowl with sprouts and sesame seeds if you like.

Never apologise for tumeric recipes – that little spice is packed so full of goodness + I don’t think it’s possible to have too much of it. Love the goodness of this recipe + those little sprouting powerhouses on top.ReplyCancel

What a great idea! Turmeric has become one of my favorite spices lately – I love its pungent flavor, and especially its healing properties. I haven’t experimented much with it in foods though, as I typically just stir it into my morning warm lemon water. This is a must-try for me! Love your recipe.ReplyCancel

Hi Laura,
I just saw your beautiful pic you sent with this morning’s tweet and had to come see more. Imagine my surprise when I come across some of those beautiful food photography I’ve ever seen! Your site is gorgeous and so inspirational – thanks for sharing!ReplyCancel

Bring on the turmeric! I don’t use it enough and vibrant recipes like these are a vital reminder that I need to incorporate it into my cooking much more frequently. :) Gorgeous recipe, Laura — thank you so much for sharing this.ReplyCancel

Shilpa06/03/2014 - 10:56 am

This is the perfect recipe for me today. I am in the thick of fighting this weird bug. Don’t we all get sick right after we talk about how we haven’t got sick all year? This soup is perfect. I have been making a turmeric tea in the mornings so I am excited about this broth!

I met Tony at the Guelph Organic Conference a few years ago. He certainly does have a glow! And seems to always have people around him.

This is real serious I’m making what I have in the fridge & pantry. They are always the best meals, and tumeric is good for inflammation something we all likely have in Ontario in the depths of winter. Nice one.ReplyCancel

This looks like the kind of meal I would make, and then keep on infinite rotation until my skin was orange from beta-carotene and my spoons yellow from turmeric. But, I’m totally okay with that, because someone told me it’s the cool thing nowadays. Shoots are a bit new to me, but I’m sure they’d find a cozy place among the goodness and warmth.ReplyCancel

I love the idea of putting a gorgeous broth with a light grain and a roasted vegetable. I definitely intended to try this – perhaps as part of a variation using quinoa. Would that work, too? Beautiful photos, as well.ReplyCancel

I’m down with anything with turmeric or sprouts. My favorite are broccoli and radish! They last so long in the fridge too. My sprouting was fueled by the fact that our stores (Alaska) will no longer carry mung bean sprouts :( But now I do my own! This looks wonderful!ReplyCancel

This is one of those “all-my-favourite-things-in-one-bowl” recipes that had me coo-ing immediately – sweet caramel root veg, ginger-garlic spiciness, turmeric earthiness – and OF COURSE it was absolutely delcious. I topped the bowl with some wrinkly black olives which I would HIGHLY recommend to add some salty to the earthy-citrusy-sweet flavour combo!
Thank you so so mcuh Laura ;)

Tonight I ran this for dinner service with some great results! Thanks for the inspiration. “Odori-Brined Pan Roasted Pheasant Breast with Herb-Roasted Rainbow Organic Carrots & Crimini Mushroom Infused Wild Rice in Spicy Turmeric Broth with Ginger & Allium”
It can be funny how we find the need to twist the words for the restaurant guest. In short, “It is good food, and we care about our ingredients and techniques. You will love it.”ReplyCancel

Erin30/03/2014 - 3:24 pm

I made this for lunch today. Didn’t have any ginger but it was still delicious without it!ReplyCancel

I got here from Heidi’s 101cookbooks.com and I’m so pleased for the recommendation. I made this with a few adjustments, including four times the amount of ginger, lemon and turmeric plus some homemade coconut milk in with the water. Outrageously good! Thank you so much for a quick, restorative, healthful and bright addition to my repertoire.ReplyCancel

Hi Laura, thank you so much for sharing this recipe! I made it this week and it was so delicious! I almost never cook with ingredients like ginger and turmeric, but I was sick this past week, and was inspired to use immunity-boosting ingredients. I mentioned you in my blog post: http://lacycooke.blogspot.com/2014/10/changes-and-ideas.html
Thanks again!ReplyCancel

This is such a beautiful meal! I just made it for a client today … taste tested it of course… and will have to make it form me and my guy ASAP! So good! I added some grilled asparagus on top as well.ReplyCancel

[…] tea was a lighter option considering the huge fish and chips for lunch. I took this recipe from The First Mess (one of my new favourite food blogs). The recipe turned out OK, I think there was too much turmeric […]ReplyCancel

I made this using fresh turmeric in lieu of ground and polenta instead of rice (idk I thought it would soak in the flavor more.) I SO loved it. will definitely make again, maybe using parsnip and a little more lemon juice. Thanks for the recipe oxReplyCancel